HTLF Bank Lowers Stock Holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ)

HTLF Bank lowered its holdings in Assurant, Inc. (NYSE:AIZ) by 3.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 103 shares during the period. HTLF Bank’s holdings in Assurant were worth $540,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Empirical Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the third quarter valued at $883,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the third quarter valued at $123,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Assurant by 33.4% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 2,531 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $503,000 after purchasing an additional 633 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Assurant by 85.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $841,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares during the period. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Assurant in the third quarter valued at $242,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Martin Jenns sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.13, for a total value of $267,195.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $717,329.51. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Dimitry Dirienzo sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.44, for a total value of $103,642.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,962.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AIZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Assurant from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com raised Assurant from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Assurant from $217.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Assurant from $228.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Assurant from $186.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $214.60.

Assurant Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of AIZ traded up $1.87 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $194.74. 286,234 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 349,709. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $191.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $178.96. The company has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.57. Assurant, Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.61 and a 1-year high of $201.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. Assurant had a return on equity of 19.63% and a net margin of 6.90%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.89 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Assurant, Inc. will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Assurant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Assurant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.10%.

Assurant Profile

Assurant, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides business services that supports, protects, and connects consumer purchases in North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through two segments: Global Lifestyle and Global Housing. The Global Lifestyle segment offers mobile device solutions, and extended service contracts and related services for consumer electronics and appliances, and credit and other insurance products; and vehicle protection, commercial equipment, and other related services.